UN Security Council to vote Monday on Syria aid access resolution

UNITED NATIONS: The U.N. Security Council will vote Monday on a resolution to allow aid access at four border crossings into rebel-held areas of Syria without government consent, said Western diplomats, who were hopeful Russia and China will support the move.

Australian U.N. Ambassador Gary Quinlan, who drafted the resolution with Luxembourg and Jordan, posted on Twitter that the final version of the text had been circulated to all 15-council members on Friday.

Diplomats said the vote would beheld on Monday, likely at 12 p.m. (1600 GMT).

The United Nations says some 10.8 million people in Syria need help, of which 4.7 million are in hard-to-reach areas,while another three million have fled the conflict.

A key sticking point with Russia and China has been a threat of further measures against parties that did not comply with this resolution or resolution 2139 adopted in February -measures that also aimed to boost aid access but failed.